Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education Commons^™

The Achievement Gap: A Dual Nation Perspective, Myka Chavez

Honors Projects

This essay seeks to explore the achievement gap, which is a disparity in educational achievement between certain economic and racial groups, by taking a unique approach and bringing a fresh perspective. Specifically, this research focuses on how this gap is manifested in two countries: the U.S. and England. This dual nation perspective opens the door for more information and a better understanding of the gap as a whole. Analysis will be done regarding the various issues surrounding the gap in each country such as its causes, effects, and past/present solutions. Based on how these issues occur in each country and …

Social Justice Education: Using Communication Activism Pedagogy To Help University Cultural Centers Increase Campus Diversity & Inclusivity, Sophia T. Vu

Journalism

This study examined how student affairs professionals, especially those in cultural centers, could increase campus diversity and inclusivity. More specifically, it sought to find a theoretical basis for social justice education programs that could increase campus climate. It was performed as a single site case study at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Three Cal Poly student affairs professionals were interviewed for qualitative data which were then compared and analyzed with the literature surrounding campus diversity and inclusivity. The study concludes that student affairs professionals can increase campus diversity and inclusivity by developing social justice education programs that not …

Creating A Framework For Success For High School African American Males: A Policy Advocacy Document, Ilandus Hampton Sr.

Dissertations

The policy advocacy document is an alternative to the traditional doctoral dissertation. This approach arose from the educational administration preparation reform agenda which calls for more thoughtful approaches to educational policy development, a concern that educational leadership express itself in a moral context, and a desire to develop reflective practices in administration. (Browder, 1995). This document attempts to ensure public schools, high schools in particular, are providing African American males with the skills and knowledge necessary to be academically successful so that they are given the opportunity and support necessary to achieve economic and social advancements throughout life. The policy …

2015 Indian American Read-In, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Cultural Read-Ins

This event was co-sponsored by the Indian Student Association, Peer Multicultural Educators (PME), the IRC, the English team, and the History/Social Science team.

Performance by: Indian Student Association

2015 Lgbtqa Read-In, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Cultural Read-Ins

This event was co-sponsored by Spectrum, Peer Multicultural Educators (PME), the IRC, and the English team.

Culturally Responsive Contexts: Establishing Relationships For Inclusion, Mere Berryman, Therese Ford, Ann Nevin, Suzanne Soohoo

Education Faculty Articles and Research

As our education systems become more culturally, ethnically and linguistically diverse, rather than benefiting and learning from each other, we still expect all students to be represented within the same curriculum, pedagogy and testing regimen or we form separate enclaves resulting in marginalizaton. When diverse students have physical and/or learning disabilities, marginalization is further exacerbated and problematized. In this paper, the authors theorise within an alternative framework that we have termed relational and culturally responsive inclusion. Based on key understandings from our own research, much of it derived from Kaupapa Māori and Freirean philosophies, we encourage a framework where establishing …

The Jesuit Social Justice Dialectic Within The Cristo Rey School Model, Sajit U. Kabadi

Journal of Catholic Education

This article reports findings from a qualitative case study of a Cristo Rey Jesuit high school. The Jesuit social justice dialectic strives to maintain a balance between the preservation of the virtue of the Jesuit mission and the selling of the Jesuit brand. The Jesuit mission consists of Catholic evangelization through cultural immersion and social justice. The Jesuit brand consists of the accumulation of financial wealth and political influence essential to the ambitions of the Jesuit mission coming to fruition. This journal article explores this Jesuit social justice dialectic in action looking at the corporate work-study program utilized in the …

Collaboration, Pedagogy, And Media: Short-Term Summer Program Emphasizes Project Based And Social-Emotional Learning., William R. Bowden

Journal of Media Literacy Education

This article purports the idea that summer programs that experiment with media literacy and social-emotional learning could potentially affect students’ academic performance. Based on a six-week program, working with rising eighth grade students in a low-income school district, this program allowed students to work on media projects while trying to develop stronger capacities of self-awareness, positive decision-making, and stronger relationship development. The article intends to offer practitioners in media studies and pedagogy, insight of how to implement social and emotional learning into media classrooms.

Ise Annual Report 2014-2015, Intercultural Student Engagement Office, Anthony Johnson

Intercultural Student Engagement (ISE) Annual Reports

The ISE Annual Report 2014-2015 is a year in review containing a message from the director, staff updates, community programs, statistics and general report of the work of this office. Our Mission: The office of Intercultural Student Engagement (ISE) fosters multicultural understanding and personalized support at RISD by engaging its community through programming, advocacy, and specialized services. ISE believes in the power of art and design to unleash our inherent curiosity, constantly broadening and reshaping our understanding of the human experience. ISE envisions an artistic community where the breadth of the human dignity is creatively realized, inspiring everyone to collectively …

Then And Now: An Analysis Of Broad-Based Merit Aid Initial Eligibility Policies After Twenty Years, William K. Ingle, Jason R. Ratliff

Kentucky Journal of Higher Education Policy and Practice

Using Hall’s framework of policy changes, we sought to document and classify changes in initial eligibility and award provisions of broad-based merit aid scholarship programs at inception and present day. Our analysis revealed five first-order changes, two second-order changes, and only one third order change. Although the policy settings, instruments, and goals remained static in five states, the scholarship dollars in four of them have not kept up with increases in overall cost of attendance.

What Is Social Justice? Opening A Discussion, John M. Winslade

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

This paper is a record of a discussion on social justice that took place at California State University San Bernardino on January 23, 2013. It addresses the definition of what social justice is, what injustice is, and the significance of a concern for social justice for educators. Multiple viewpoints are included.

Pre-Service Teacher Candidates’ Knowledge And Attitudes Of Lesbian, Gay, And Bisexual People, Casey M. Halcro

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

The California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) mandates teachers to provide equitable access to the core curriculum by maximizing academic achievement for all students, including those who are lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB), (Commission on Teacher Credentialing, 2014). Without the knowledge, support, and acceptance of their teachers, LGB youth will experience multiple challenges during their K-12 educational careers. Scholarly literature reveals that the understanding and abilities of pre-service teachers to create safe spaces for LGB youth needs to be developed if pre-service teachers are eventually to become allies for LGB youth (Kearns, Mitton-Kukner, & Tompkins, 2014). Pre-service teacher education bears …

Effective Practices For Developing Academic Language And Writing Skills In English Language Learners In The Elementary School Setting, Jenna N. Emadzadeh

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

With an increased population of English Language Learners (ELLs), educators are in need of programs and strategies that help their students learn academic content while learning to understand, speak, read, and write English (Duessen, Autio, Roccegrandi & Hanita, 2014). ELLs face several obstacles while learning in an elementary school classroom.

Studies have shown the positive effects of word analysis and vocabulary learning strategies on student achievement (Carlo, August, McLaughlin, Snow, Dressler, Lippman, Lively & White, 2004). Project GLAD is a model of professional development in the area of language acquisition and literacy that focuses on such instruction. According to Echevarria …

2015 Cinco De Mayo Read-In, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Cultural Read-Ins

This event was co-sponsored by Alma Latina, Peer Multicultural Educators (PME), the IRC, and the English team.

Special Guest: Spoken Word Artist, Michael Reyes

Reckless Abandonment? Explaining Congressional Hispanic Caucus Support For The 2001 No Child Left Behind Act, Elizabeth C. Reynolds

Politics Honors Papers

When No Child Left Behind (NCLB) was signed into law in early 2002, many hoped the legislation would help reduce achievement gaps among traditionally underperforming populations. For Hispanic students specifically, however, NCLB has contributed to educational inequality, school segregation, and high drop-out rates in major ways. Given these outcomes and trends, it is surprising that members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) and other Hispanic American interest groups overwhelmingly supported NCLB despite potentially being able to anticipate how the law would hurt Hispanic students. The political environment of 2001 left members of the CHC with few options other than to …

2015 Women's History Month Literature Read-In, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Cultural Read-Ins

This event was co-sponsored by Peer Multicultural Educators (PME), BELLAS, FELLAS, the IRC, and the English team.

2015 African American Read-In, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Cultural Read-Ins

This event was co-sponsored by the Black Student Union (BSU), Peer Multicultural Educators (PME), the IRC, and the English team.

Special Guests: Mama SheShe and Walkin Contradition

Fearless: Maihan Wali, Christina L. Bassler

SURGE

Maihan Wali describes herself as “one of those kids that always wanted to help.”

So when she noticed that many of her peers in her class struggled with reading and writing, she started a peer to peer literacy program with the help of her sister and a few friends. She was only 8 years old. [excerpt]

“Warming Up” In The Developmental Sequence? Upward Transfer Conditional On Dependency Status, Cody Davidson, Kristin B. Wilson

Kentucky Journal of Higher Education Policy and Practice

The purpose of this study was to determine predictor factors of upward transfer for Kentucky community college students enrolled in a developmental algebra course. For independent students, a mother with a college degree, a declared major, a federal work-study position, greater adjusted gross income, and a higher grade point average was positively correlated with upward transfer. For dependent students, a father with a college degree, a declared major, and a higher grade point average was positively correlated with upward transfer.

Constructing And Resisting Disability In Mathematics Classrooms: A Case Study Exploring The Impact Of Different Pedagogies, Rachel Lambert

Education Faculty Articles and Research

This study demonstrates the importance of a critical lens on disability in mathematics educational research. This ethnographic and interview study investigated how ability and disability were constructed over 1 year in a middle school mathematics classroom. Children participated in two kinds of mathematical pedagogy that positioned children differently: procedural and discussion-based. These practices shifted over time, as the teacher increasingly focused on memorization of procedures to prepare for state testing. Two Latino/a children with learning disabilities, Ana and Luis, used multiple cultural practices as resources, mixing and remixing their engagement in and identifications with mathematics. Ana, though mastering the procedural …

Teachers’ Perceptions Of The Implementation Of The Literacy Common Core State Standards For English Language Learners And Students With Disabilities, Audrey Figueroa Murphy, Elizabeth Haller

Curriculum & Instruction Faculty Publications

This qualitative study explored the experiences of U.S. teachers of English language learners (ELLs) and students with disabilities (SWDs) as they sought to align the new Common Core State Standards (CCSS) with previously used standards and instructional approaches during the first year of CCSS implementation. Open-ended interviews were conducted with 20 ELL and SWD literacy teachers to investigate (1) the teachers’ experiences as they began the alignment of their curriculum and teaching methods with the CCSS, (2) the teachers’ perceptions of the support that they received and that they still require, and (3) the teachers’ perceptions of the challenges to …

Inclusive Leadership And Gender, Margaret Grogan, Shamini Dias

Margaret Grogan

A review of relevant recent research indicates that girls’ issues are generally off the radar screen in local pre-K-12 schools in the United States. This is particularly problematic because gender inequities continue to be perpetuated in schools through largely unconscious cultural mores and pedagogies. Gender inequities are deeply rooted in historical, philosophical, and cultural narratives of gender so that we, educators, are ourselves articulations of gender-based narratives. Moreover, the intersectionalities between gender, race, English speaking ability, sexuality, class, religion, ability, poverty etc. greatly exacerbate this problem. Together with their teachers, principals must develop critical self-awareness as well as intentional ways …

Loudness In The Library: Empowering Students To Think Critically About Identity And Bias, Anshu Wahi, Allie Bruce, Jamie Steinfeld

Progressive Education in Context

Describes how an unplanned, informal discussion about how race and identity are depicted on book covers evolved into a year-long investigation with a class of 11 and 12-year-olds where the interests and comments of the students drove the curriculum.

Increasing The High School Graduation Rate Of Native American Students In Public Schools, Sierra M. Gibson

CMC Senior Theses

Native American students obtain the lowest on-time high school graduation rate among all races and ethnicities in the United States. Through an analysis of previously published literature and seven interviews conducted by the author, this paper sets out to identify the key barriers Native students face when working toward their high school diploma. This paper will argue that, together, a history of abusive educational tactics and an institutionally racist policies and practices adopted by the U.S. Department of Education have made it challenging for Native students to complete high school on time.

Culturally Relevant Booktalking: Using A Mixed Reality Simulation With Preservice School Librarians, Janice Underwood, Sue Crownfield Kimmel, Danielle Forest, Gail K. Dickinson

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

The role of school librarians is often overlooked in advancing a respect for cultural diversity among youth, yet librarians are in key positions to champion for social justice reform in educational settings. In this qualitative study, we examine preservice school librarians' experiences with booktalking multicultural literature in a mixed reality simulation environment, as a vehicle to introduce social justice issues. Our purpose was to explore the booktalking experience as a means of developing preservice librarians' understanding of culturally relevant pedagogy, a stance concerned with developing cultural competence and critical consciousness. Our findings revealed that preservice librarians gained different levels of …

The Learning Station: A Holistic Single-Case Study Of An After School Program To Address The Achievement Gap, Serenity Wright

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

The three parts of this dissertation provide multiple perspectives on a single-case study of the ways in which the achievement gap is defined in one Kentucky school district. The case study focuses on the Learning Station, an after-school tutoring program that intended to address the achievement gap for minority and low-income students. Given the intensity of high stakes testing and testing frequency becoming part of the national mainstream conversation, the first part provides a brief overview of the various state and district mandated tests that students are required to take throughout the course of the year. I use quantitative data …

Critical Pedagogy In Classroom Discourse, Loukia K. Sarroub, Sabrina Quadros

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

The classroom is a unique discursive space for the enactment of critical pedagogy. In some ways, all classroom discourse is critical because it is inherently political, and at the heart of critical pedagogy is an implicit understanding that power is negotiated daily by teachers and students. Historically, critical pedagogy is rooted in schools of thought that have emphasized the individual and the self in relation and in contrast to society, sociocultural and ideological forces, and economic factors and social progress. In addressing conceptualizations in Orthodox Marxism (with Karl Marx, Max Weber, and Emile Durkheim) in the mid-19th century and the …